


in your shadow

by fuurin (uzumaki_rakku)



Category: League of Legends
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Darkin - Freeform, Gen, Ionia - Freeform, Kayn gets possessed by Rhaast - goes back - attacks Zed, M/M, Ninjas - Freeform, Possibly Pre-Slash, onesided KaynZed, set just before the Jhinvestigation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-03
Updated: 2019-03-03
Packaged: 2019-11-08 22:51:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17989994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/uzumaki_rakku/pseuds/fuurin
Summary: The Darkin laughed as it fully emerged from the wall and Zed silently cursed himself, realising what must have happened.He should never have sent the boy to Noxus.





	in your shadow

There was a subtle, almost imperceptible shift in the shadows and Zed paused, one hand at the edge of his mask.

“Aptitude for the shadow arts is no excuse for your neglect of the basic courtesy of knocking,” he said, placing the teacup in his other hand back upon the table. “You’re late. Did the Noxians put up an actual fight?”

A scarlet scythe cut through the air, but caught only insubstantial darkness in its blade as the ninja instantly switched places with a shadow.

The darkin laughed as it fully emerged from the wall and Zed silently cursed himself, realising what must have happened.

He should never have sent the boy to Noxus.

The horned creature possessing his student’s body scanned the room with its crimson gaze, the eye on the weapon glowing with the force of its bloodlust.

 **“So this is your precious ‘Master Zed’…”** the creature spoke in a deep, gravelly rumble – so jarringly different from Kayn’s sharp tones, which were always full of adolescent arrogance. **“Why don’t we see if the student has finally surpassed the teacher?”**

Zed made no reply, shifting soundlessly within the shadows of the darkened room as he waited for an opening. _That foolish child…_

The temple was eerily quiet. None of the acolytes had even noticed the intrusion, and Zed was uncertain if any of them had already fallen to the Blade of Millennia.

He could see fresh blood gleaming on the weapon’s edge, and remembered that Nakuri had been missing ever since Kayn left on his mission.

 **“I tire of this hide-and-seek,”** the creature said, tilting its head at the upper right corner of the nearest wall. **“You shall – ”**

Zed struck. Shadow imitations of himself surrounded the darkin within the fraction of a second, forcing it to defend against the flurry of shuriken coming from all angles, and the Master of Shadows used that distraction to bring his dual shadow blades down upon the creature’s back.

_Clang._

The scythe had blocked the deadly blow, the two weapons crashing together with such force that it sent a jolt of pain up his forearm. The darkin laughed, and the eye on its scythe glowed even brighter with gleeful triumph.

 _Shared field of vision,_ Zed thought. _As I expected._

 **“The unseen blade?”** the creature mocked as tendrils of corruption began creeping towards Zed. **“There is no weapon deadlier than I.”**

 _“Is that so?”_ Zed said softly.

The shadows around them abruptly converged upon the DARKIN, reforming themselves as coils of rope-like bindings wound tightly around their enraged captive.

Zed readied his blades, hands clenched into fists as he stared upon what his student had become. “You will go no further.”

There was no room for hesitation or regret. He had but one chance to kill the darkin before it could break free from its bonds.

“This is the end.”

And yet, his blade stopped bare millimetres from the creature’s neck.

Pain blossomed along his chest and back as he was sent flying into a wall. He had barely managed to avoid a fatal blow, but the bladed edge had still grazed him and left a bleeding cut in his side.

Zed coughed wetly as he forced himself back on his feet, but he was weakened, and could not react in time as the darkin dissolved into intangible shadow and dived into his body.

That was Kayn’s unique skill, of which the boy had been so proud…

Kayn’s mastery of the shadow arts was second only to Zed himself, but now he had the power of a darkin – no, it was the darkin which possessed Kayn’s power, and Zed found himself swiftly losing strength against the creature. Every cell in his body _burned_ with the pain, and somewhere in the back of his mind he was grateful that his throat had closed up from the unbearable agony. He would not give his tormentor the satisfaction of hearing him scream.

 **“CAN’T BEAR TO KILL YOUR BOY?”** the darkin’s voice boomed inside his mind. **“FOOL! KAYN WEEPS IN THE ABYSS BETWEEN OBLIVIONS.”**

His senses, overloaded with pain, began to go numb as he lost feeling in his limbs and collapsed onto the floor.

He had lost his only chance. That moment of hesitation, the simplest yet most fatal of mistakes, had cost him everything in that fight. It was truly laughable that petty _sentiment_ would bring him to his end, despite all he had done and all he had achieved…

Zed made one last, desperate reach for the shadows.

Was this how Kusho had felt?

He fell into darkness.

.

“Master Zed… Master Zed!”

He knew that voice.

“Please wake up!”

The anguished tone was unfamiliar to him, but if he could just remember who it was…

“I’m sorry…”

His head was pounding and he wanted to sleep for an eternity, but that person simply would not stop talking and _he knew that voice._

“Brat…” Zed rasped, cracking open a bleary eye to glare at his errant pupil. “You sure know… how to get into the worst trouble…”

“Master Zed!!”

Zed gave a cry of pain as he was seized around the torso by the distraught youth. “S… Stop that!”

“I’M SO SORRY!”

“Get _off!”_

Kayn flinched but did not relinquish his hold, only lessening the pressure so his teacher could actually breathe. The young ninja’s long dark hair had fallen loose from its usual braid, brushing against Zed’s chin in a manner that was beginning to tickle.

_Wait._

_“You removed my mask?!”_ Zed hissed, and Kayn pulled back immediately, looking at him with wide eyes.

“You weren’t breathing!” he protested guiltily. “I had to do _something.”_

Zed came to a quick decision that he was better off without considering the full implications of that sentence – which was just as well, since his attention had already been drawn to more pressing matters.

The darkin’s corruption was evident on Kayn’s body, beginning at his claw-like left hand and creeping up his arm such that the entire limb and shoulder appeared to be encased in some form of armour.

Zed abruptly pushed himself up, ignoring the sharp pain the movement sent through his side. To Kayn’s credit he did not even shudder as his master moved, lightning-fast despite his injuries, shadow blades coming to rest just below Kayn’s bowed head. He froze in place, hardly daring to breathe, as the weapons’ lethal tips lightly grazed the underside of his chin.

“Raise your head,” Zed commanded and Kayn could only obey, further exposing his bare neck.

His eyes remained downcast, and it took all his effort not to flinch when the master assassin’s other hand moved towards his face, blades fully extended. Every instinct screamed at him to run, but he could not.

He dared not.

The shadow blades moved with excruciating slowness, pushing aside the veil of his bangs to reveal the left side of his face. There was no hiding the mark of corruption upon his skin, or the glowing scarlet eye that had replaced his own.

He watched, heart thundering in his chest, as Zed tilted his hand ever so slightly and strands of dark hair immediately fell, severed by their contact with the weapon’s edge.

“Is it fear that keeps you from looking at me?” Zed asked, his voice unnervingly calm.

Kayn swallowed shallowly. “Shame,” he whispered.

“You deliberately disobeyed me,” his master said, dark red eyes pinning him like a butterfly to a mounting board. “You killed a fellow acolyte and attacked your master. Your arrogance nearly brought destruction upon us all.”

To his horror, Kayn felt hot bitter tears forming in his eyes. “I’m sorry.”

There was an urgent knock on the door before either of them could speak another word.

Kayn choked on a sob as the older ninja retracted his blades and got to his feet.

“You will remain here,” Zed’s expression was inscrutable. “I shall decide what to do with you later.”

.

Shadows wound themselves around Kayn as Zed left the room, binding his legs together and his arms to his sides.

The darkin scythe lay on the ground not far away, its crimson eye half-closed, but there was no silencing its voice inside Kayn’s head.

**‘Cowering on your knees in front of the human _I_ could’ve killed so easily… Pathetic.’**

_Shut up,_ Kayn thought fiercely. _You would’ve met your destruction had he not stayed his hand._

Pain shot up his corrupted arm and he drew in a sharp breath. The darkin sneered. **‘Weak.’**

Kayn shifted himself with a furious wriggle, glad that there was nobody else around to witness his gracelessness, and shot a vehement glare at the sentient weapon. “Master Zed is _not_ weak!”

What sardonic reply the sentient weapon would have made to that was never known, for at that moment shadow magic flared in the corridor outside with such force that every single person in the temple froze.

The bindings around Kayn disappeared and he scrambled to his feet, alarmed by the sudden turn of events. Without stopping to think he grabbed the scythe and dove at the wall, almost flying through it in his haste to reach the source of the disturbance…

…and very nearly had his head taken off when Zed instinctively swiped at him, blades fully extended.

Kayn ducked and darted back, belatedly realising his mistake. Zed glowered at his errant student, and the sight of that blood-red glare made Kayn wonder if he should just sink into the ground and hide until the older ninja’s fury subsided.

Zed sighed deeply, and rubbed at his temples.

“Get back inside,” he ordered, feeling suddenly exhausted, and Kayn meekly obeyed.

As his student closed the door behind him, Zed’s attention returned to the crumpled sheet of paper in his hand, which bore a single sentence: _The Golden Demon has escaped._

Could it possibly be true?

Tuula Prison was amongst the most secure facilities in Zhyun. Even Zed himself would have struggled to break _into_ the place, not to mention getting out…

The implications disturbed him. If Khada Jhin had indeed broken free, then he either possessed hidden abilities no one was aware of, or someone had helped him escape. How long had passed since it happened? None of his other informants had sent news of a disturbance at Tuula. Had that information been deliberately hidden from the public?

Zed drew in a breath.

Did Shen know?

—No, the Kinkou must still be unaware. Zed would not believe that Shen could stand by and do nothing when _that thing_ was free once more.

He had to act. He knew where Shen could be found, and he would set off immediately. Zed pushed open the door to his private quarters, then paused when his eyes fell upon Kayn.

The youth had slipped into an uneasy slumber while waiting for Zed to return, one hand still clutched around the handle of his weapon. His long dark hair pooled on the floor mat behind him, and the moonlight which streamed in through the window fell softly over his sleeping face.

 _You really know how to get into the worst of troubles,_ Zed thought wryly.

There was no other choice. He had hoped to one day pass the leadership of the Order to his most promising student, but that day lay far into the future, and he simply could not leave Kayn unsupervised in the current situation.

 _He’s too young._ The thought came unbidden as he noiselessly closed the door behind him.

 _He’s older than I was, back then,_ Zed told himself, and reached out a hand to wake his sleeping student.

 _That doesn’t mean he’ll be ready,_ the treacherous voice in his mind whispered. _You weren’t._

Zed ignored it.

**Author's Note:**

> Will eventually be continued o/


End file.
